Page 12 of Hello, Listener
“Well, good. Glad to hear it.” He walks towards his office.What a prick.He isn’t so badoutof the office.
Who am I kidding? The guy is a fucking cocky asshole. My hand digs my phone out of my dark gray slacks, checking the time while walking to my own office.
“Hello, Mr. Jones.” My secretary, Stacy, greets me after every morning conference. She was hired by my son of a bitch father-in-law. The bastard isn’t as cunning as he tries to make everyone believe. I know it is so he can salivate whenever she bends over in her tight black pencil skirts. I wouldn’t be too surprised if he tried to do more than just that. She is the center of every man’s attention as they walk by her small desk in front of my office. They’re all a bunch of beasts in three-piece suits.
Her dark brown hair is pinned up. Only being held up by one of those clips, I see my wife wearing one from timeto time. What do you call them? Claw clips, maybe. She wears her large tortoise-shell glasses, which accentuate her big, beautiful brown eyes. The wolves of Wall Street drool over her and stare at her cleavage between her tight button-down silk shirts and tight sweaters that she seamlessly tucks into her skirts.
“Hello, Stacy.” I try my best to be polite in this place. She gets enough from the animals that work here. I give her a gentle smile and head to my office. Her cheeks blushing through the office windows. She seems sweet. Too sweet for a place likethis.
This morning, my phone has become a hindrance to my occupation. After locking myself in my office, I mindlessly scroll through social media. Pictures of mutual connections fill the screen of my phone. Most of the accounts are from other podcasts and true crime stories. Some of them include mysteries and cases that have yet to be solved. Same shit posted every day.
However now, I have someone new to look at. Maybelookisn’t the right word. Gawk? No, that isn’t it either. How about studying intensely until I know everything about her? Yes, that seems more fitting at this point. How does the song go? “I can’t take my eyes off of you.”
Her account is in my list of followers with her name at the top. Like the dedicated follower I am, I fixate on her face for what seems like minutes. While looking at her posing so perfectly, it feels like time has fucking frozen.
She shines under the glow of Edison bulbs, her face in a contented expression with a slight upward smile. Her picture shows her pouring what looks like bourbon into a glass. Her red hair is pinned up with long, wavy pieces falling out just right.Damn. If you look close enough, you can see her black shirt hugging her tits justright. I bite my lower lip, imagining what her smooth skin would feel like under my lips.Thalia, you shouldn’t pose like that. You could attract strange men. Strange men who stare at your pictures. Strange men who want to do more than just stare.My breathing gets heavier, and my skin gets tight.New listener, what have you done to me?
My unhealthy gape is interrupted by the sound of Stacey’s voice through the intercom. “Mr. Jones, Mrs. Jones is on line one.” Her voice is still sweet through the rough speakers of the office phone.Focus, Alan. Your wife is on the phone.“Thank you, Stacy. Put her through,” I utter calmly.
Taking a second to breathe, I put on the act that I wasn’t just lusting over a woman I’ve never met. “Alan Jones speaking,” clearing my throat and turning on my professional attorney voice. You never know who could be listening. It always pays to be cautious in this business.
“Alan.” The way she says my name is more out of annoyance than a loving and compassionate wife.
“Ashley. Yes, dear…” My tone matches hers.
“I just wanted to let you know that I am leaving to go to my tennis lesson. I may go get drinks with the girls after. If you need anything, feel free to call. I may not answer right away.”Of course, tennis. Don’t worry, dear, I know you’re fucking your tennis instructor. I have known for a while now. The way your eyes widen whenever he texts you and the way you try to hide the screen on your phone gives away your dirty little secret. Don’t worry, baby. I have my secrets too.
“I’ll be fine, Ashley. Go enjoy your lesson. Have a drink for me.” I wonder if she can hear the smile in my voice as I look down at my phone, still staring at the woman unknowingly smiling back up at me.
“Thank you. I’ll have a few for you.” She laughs. “Don’t forget, my book club is tomorrow night.”
“How could I ever forget?” The more I scroll through Thalia’s other posts, the less interested I am in what Ashley has to say.
“Okay,” she lets out another fake laugh. “I will be home later.”She won’t. She’ll say she’s drunk and that she's staying with one of her friends.It’s become a weekly occurrence. I know where she really will be, opening her legs for another man while I think of buryingmyselfbetween another woman’s thighs.
“Okay. Enjoy your day.” The phone clicks off as she hangs up first. A part of me is a bit relieved. The deep sigh I let out as I exit Thalia’s social media page, I admit, is exaggerated. The lawyer in me goes back to what I should have been doing—looking through the long list of emails and tasks the boss man left for me. Thatshouldkeep me from looking through Thalia’s social media scrapbook.
I have been sucked in.I can shake my head at the thought, but there isn’t any denying it. Thalia is always on my mind. My overthinking makes me wonder what she’s doing. Who is she doing it with? What her voice sounds like, what she looks like when she laughs. What would she look like underneath me? How her voice would sound when she makes little moans, and how it’d change when she screams my name.
I have to know. Ihaveto see her. I need to find out firsthand. I am officially obsessed, and I’ve created this unhealthy addiction to someone I have only seen in pictures. I do know one thing, however: she likes my voice, and I can use that to my advantage.What woman wouldn’t fall for my sophisticated words?
I may not personally know her, but I continuously crave the woman she claims to be through everything she puts online forme to see. I know where she works, what she does and what drinks are her specialties. I know with whom she spends her time. She lays it all out for everyone to see.
I can tell you where she stops after work, the route she takes and the boots she wears while she’s walking.Such tall black boots with so many laces.I can only imagine watching her slowly tie them up on her long legs. Imagining untying the long laces at the top of her thighs with my teeth makes my skin go hot. I picture her pale skin peeking through the tiny holes in her black fishnet stockings. What I wouldn’t do to rub my hands down them—tearthem.Fuck, listener, what have you done to me?
God knows how many people she has enticed. How many men has she lured into her web? My skin gets hotter and I loosen the tie around the collar of my shirt. I need to see her in person. I have to be near her and hear her voice. From what she has already done to me, it’s only fair. The craving to be in the same room with her is all I think about. There is no better time than tonight and Lee is always saying how I need to get out of the house. What better excuse to have than the one I do now?
I pick up the office receiver and my hands begin to shake as my plan begins to unfold in my mind.Call Lee,suggest a spontaneous guys' night, pick The Neon Rose Lounge as a spot for drinks and meet Thalia. What scares me is what I will do when we meet face to face. Will I mutter aimlessly like a babbling idiot? Will I sit and stare like a deer in headlights? Why am I acting like a teenager getting ready for their first date?
I dial Lee even as my mind is still unclear about my next steps. “Hey, asshole.” He answers. “What do you want?”Such a gentleman.
“Hey, fucker. What are you doingtonight?”
“Not much planned. Just have to stop in at a new bar for a sec. I just signed a new client. I need to talk about inventory with the bar owner. Some of the new shipment is coming in. Why? You got something in mind?”
“Yeah. Ashley won’t be home, and I thought, what better night than tonight to get some drinks with my good friend, Lee.” He can probably see the smile on my face through the receiver.
“Yeah? Ashley always goes out with her friends. What’s so different about tonight? Finally taking me up on my offer?”
